I think of you from time to time (more than I thought I would)
by thebatmandiaries
Summary: Five's (and Luther's) birth and life through the eyes of an outsider.


As most stories of mine are, this was born through a discord chat.

Not sure how I feel about this one, but it has been languishing in my drafts, so I figured to post it. This story mostly focuses on Five and Luther's birth mother and her point of view.

It is an AU in some aspects pre-cannon, but everything else is cannon compliant, except for the ending when Five brings Luther to meet his birth mother, when they think the world ending is not going to happen.

All rights go to respective owners. Title from "House of Memories" by Panic! At the Disco

Enjoy!

* * *

Stephanie Lehming's day had started off like any other. She got up, and since today was a weekend and her parents were out of town for work, she was alone. She was hungry, so she decided to go out for breakfast as she was craving hash-browns and eggs, two things she currently did not have in her fridge.

She wrote her parents a note to buy more groceries.

So she called her friend "Hey Steph, you are up early."

"Yeah, couldn't sleep. Hey want to go out for breakfast? I'm craving some hash browns and eggs."

"I could go for some breakfast food."

"Alright, the diner on fifth?"

"Sounds good, meet you in thirty. I have to get ready."

"Alright."

Thirty minutes later they were at the diner eating food. Stephanie felt ravenous, like she hadn't eaten for days. Anne just raised an eye brow as she picked up a piece of pancake with her fork and popped it in her mouth.

"Hungry much?' Anne laughed.

"Yeah." She shrugged. "I have no idea why, but I am."

Her friend shrugged and said, "Are you pregnant or something?"

Steph laughed and looked at her. "Absolutely not."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure."

"Okay, I believe you."

"Mmhm. Eat your pancakes, I'm ready to go home and lay down."

Anne rolled her eyes and finished up her pancakes, gesturing the waiter to bring the check so they could pay for their meals.

Stephanie finished her meal and sighed. "Ugh, I still have Chem homework to do. Put me out of my misery Anne."

"You're the one who decided to take an AP Chemistry class for senior year not me." She laughed, as they got the check and left the money on table.

They got up and began going their separate ways. Steph had to head to swim class anyway, she had to practice.

* * *

She looked at the babies she held in her hands. They were so small, so fragile. She could barely take care of herself, let alone a two babies. Especially babies that had literally appeared out of thin air. Her swim class surrounded her, looking at the supposed 'miracle baby'.

Suddenly, a man walked in. He screamed 'rich' and was heading right towards them. She had felling she would not like this encounter. He got to her level and squatted down.

"Extraordinary! How much do you want for them?"

Her mind stopped to a halt. Did he really just ask me that?

"What?" She managed to squeak out.

"I said, how much for the kids. I am willing to take them off your hands. I can see you are a busy lady, and didn't plan on a magical pregnancy."

She still felt uneasy. This was her out, but she didn't know the guy. He was literally a stranger. Then again so was the two kids she just had, but it didn't matter. She knew she wouldn't be able to care for these kids. Not only did she not have the resources, but she didn't have the time.

Not to mention, she had no idea how she would explain this to her parents when they got back. (After the incident, she stopped going to swim practice and her parents never noticed. The one good thing about having parents who go on work trips all the time is they don't make friends with the other parents of the kids in her extracurricular activities.)

"Do you promise to take care of both of them?"

"Of course. They are both very special boys." The man, Reginald, said, nodding his head.

"Alright." She said, feeling like a terrible person. But she knew there was no other choice. If these babies wanted to have a life, a good life, then it would not be with her. She just had no room in her life for a baby right now, much less two.

"Fantastic. Well, you two, let's get moving." He took the baby from her arms as she handed him over.

She gave him a kiss on the forehead and said "I'm so sorry."

A few weeks later a huge check came. She couldn't even open it.

* * *

Years passed and slowly she was able to forgive her self. She had been so young, just a teenager in high school. She was lucky she did swim class in another town, as the news didn't spread to her high school.

She put her work bag down and turned on the news. The man who's face used to haunt her every night appeared on the screen. He stood in front of the bank, cameras flashing with six kids next to him.

He spoke with a slow cadence, gesturing to the kids next to him. "Our world is changing, has changed. There are some among us gifted with abilities far beyond the ordinary, and I have adopted six such children. I give you the inaugural class of the Umbrella Academy."

The journalists sprung into action. "Mr. Hargreeves! Mr. Hargreeves! Channel 9 News. What happened to their parents?"

Hargreeves looked into the camera. "They were suitably compensated."

"Are you concerned about the welfare of the children?"

"Of course. As I am for the fate of the world."

She shut off the television and stared at the blank screen. A churning in her gut had told her she had made a mistake. But she knew that already and had known for a long time.

She wished it changed anything.

* * *

Five looked through his father's study. He hadn't known until today that the parents were suitably compensated for their adoption. Five briefly wondered how each one of them were legally adopted, but filed that though away for later.

Finally he saw it.

**Number One, Number Five**

Sarah Lehming, 17, Russia

Mother to Number One and Number Five.

Five frowned at the bare bones of what would be his mother's information. Hopefully she was online for him to look up. He heard the door handle opening, so he quickly put the file back, closed the door, and popped to his room, looking up the woman who was his mother.

Months passed and he was on the verge of turning 13. His powers had grown exponentially, and he had finally got a hit on his mother's name.

She currently lived in the US again, moving from there to Russia at a young age. She had decided to move back to the US again due to a promising job offer, one she had been working at for a few years.

He flashed to her work and saw she was just leaving. Figuring now or never, he walked up to her.

"Excuse me, miss."

She turned around and smiled at him. "Yes, can I help you?" A Russian accent curled around her words.

"I think I might be your son, or well, of them anyway." Not the most tactful, but he'd deal with it later.

* * *

"So, tell me about this umbrella academy. You have powers?" She said, stirring her coffee. "You're a superhero then? I don't know how I feel about that, but I suppose I don't really have a say, do I?"

"My father believes that there is a significant disaster coming someday and that the six of us need to be prepared to help defend the world." He took a sip of coffee as well. "And yes, I can manipulate the space around, essentially teleporting my self to a different space than I was before."

"Oh, interesting." She didn't know how to respond to her son telling her he had literal superpowers and was an actual super-hero. So, she switched gears. She would have time to think about all of this later. "Does he treat you well? He promised that, when you were born."

He decided not to go into the specifics of his fathers training and answered, "Yes."

"Good. I'm glad." She smiled.

"Why did you give us to him?" He looked at her.

She sighed. "I was only 17, I hadn't even graduated high school yet. I could barely take care of myself, and two babies? It would have been a disaster. I wanted to give you a better life than what you would have had with me."

"Do you regret it?"

"Sometimes I wonder what my life would have been like if I hadn't gave you both away. But I knew it was the right choice, even if I felt awful doing it." She looked at him. "I wouldn't have been able to provide for you. Not like you needed. Not like you deserved."

Five nodded. "I have to get back before my family worries about me."

"How is your brother?"

"He's good, we're all very close," he decided to stretch the truth a bit, not like it mattered. This would be the last time he saw her again anyways, and he would be in so much trouble if anyone, especially his father, found out he had contacted his birth mother.

She smiled again. "Well, Five, you've grown to be quite a person. Even if it doesn't mean anything, I'm proud of you." He stands up and so does she. "It was nice meeting you, Five. I hope to see you again."

He nodded, and she gave him a quick hug. He let it slide as this was the last time they would see each other. He walked to the exit and slipped out, then popped back home.

Mom gave him a hug and asked if he wanted a sandwich. He did, and went into the kitchen, and talked to her while she made it.

A few weeks later he was in the future dealing with the wreck of his family (and the world) and he didn't have to time to think about his birth mother any more than anything else, besides surviving.

He had to ficus on surviving to get back to the past or none of it even mattered anyway.

Years went by and he was finally approached by the Temps Commision.

Five inwardly smiled.

Looks like he had found his way home after all.

* * *

In the present…when Vanya Hargreeves book is released:

Sarah looks at the book. Vayna Hargreeves? She was part of that Umbrella Academy…right? I don't remember her but she sounds vaguely familiar.

She didn't think he did. After that meeting, he had never contacted her again. She had hoped he would, but he didn't. She understood though, why he didn't. He already had a mom and dad, so he didn't really need the connection.

She held her five year old in her arms and turned to her husband. "I'm going into the store, can you watch her?"

He nodded and she went into the store.

When they got home, she settled her daughter down for a nap, and sat down on the couch. She cracked open the book.

As she read she felt more and more sick as she learned how the man she had given her sons too had done awful things in the name of "training".

He had lied to her when he said he would protect them and treat them well. She knew she shouldn't have been surprised, he had been a stranger who had done what he wanted to get these kids.

She finished the book a little while later, and set it down on the counter, tears filling her eyes. She couldn't believe what she had read. What he had done.

Her husband sat down next to her, and rubbed her shoulder. "Honey what's wrong?"

She turned to him. "I never told you this, but when I was 17 I was somehow magically pregnant and gave birth to two boys. The weird thing was when I had woken up that morning, I wasn't pregnant."

"How is that possible?"

"To this I have no idea, but the two boys I gave birth to were given to that man, Reginald Hargreeves. And he adopted them."

She gave him the book, "Read it, it's awful what he subjected them too. What I made them be subjected too."

She got and went to her bed, laying down and feeling worse with every passing minute.

The question that plagued her everyday since she had seen her son, had been turning over in her mind.

What had I done?

* * *

She opened the door as the doorbell had rang. Her daughter and husband were out visiting her mother so she had the home to herself.

"Hello?" She opened the door, seeing her son the same as she had seen him so many years ago. "How…"

She noticed there was a man next to him, very large and bulky compare to the thirteen year old next to him. "Is this…"

"Yes. Now if you have time, I would like to come in."

"Sure." She said, moving so they could come in.

"So, Five, tell me what you have been up to."

"It started a few weeks after I approached you…"


End file.
